Fastest paddler in Minnesota? Minnesota River next target for Guinness Book record-holder.

What did you do over the weekend?

Minnesotans Scott Miller and Scott Duffus spent upward of 18 rainy hours Sunday into Monday paddling — intentionally — through the night on the Minnesota River between New Ulm and Henderson.

A little more than a year ago, Miller, of Minneapolis, crewed a team of four that claimed the Guinness Book speed record for travel on the entirety of the Mississippi River. Now he’s targeting the Minnesota River, which begins near the South Dakota border in Ortonville, Minn., and weaves about 320 miles to its confluence with the Mississippi River in Fort Snelling State Park. The two men will launch their Wenonah Jensen 18 canoe May 9, hoping to complete their run in three days.

Duffus, of Owatonna, is no paddling slouch, either. He grew up in St. Peter and recalled many boyhood outings in the river bottoms of the Judson to Le Sueur section, and his father, who was a Scoutmaster, hauling a loaded trailer of canoes.

“The river is foundational to me,” he said.

Duffus’ résumé includes long-distance paddling races, including a winning tour in the men’s tandem division in the prestigious MR340 on the Missouri River in 2020. He and Miller first met in that race and later became Facebook friends over Duffus’ canoe-building and restoration skills.

Now the Minnesota River is their target. Paddling its full length isn’t new, and some adventurers have perhaps set their own standards for such a feat. Barring a setback, Miller, 48, and Duffus, 67, had hoped their attempt would get a stamp of legitimacy as a Fastest Known Time (FKT).

FKTs have gained purchase in the past 10 to 15 years in the hiking and running community — GPS and tech-driven documentation of outings that before then were considered informal and unproven. In Minnesota, athletes have established FKTs of varying distances and terrain, from running on the Medicine Lake Loop path in Plymouth to unsupported, days-long outings on the Superior Hiking Trail along the North Shore.

To Miller’s chagrin, keepers of the FKTs told him they are sticking to running — at least for now. (Climbing, skiing, swimming and skiing, for example, also are out.) So he and Duffus will attempt what they’re dubbing a Fastest Known Paddle.

“That’s why we had this idea, like, let’s create this for the paddling world,” said Miller. “I don’t how professional we are going to make it. It might be more grassroots. We’re still trying to figure all of that out.”

Miller and Duffus expect to paddle near-continuously, with occasional pit stops and sleep breaks, when they launch in May. Until now, they have trained once or twice a week for the past six weeks with multiple-hour paddling. Sunday marked a new territory in length. Both men said it was important to experience the Minnesota at night for safety training and navigating among downed cottonwoods and other trees that are a regular presence.

Miller said the shakedown trip was beautiful and challenging — and a reminder of the need for river knowledge and proper equipment. Duffus ran a spotlight from the bow, while Miller monitored geospatial PDF maps of the river. They even have running lights running off a lithium battery.

“We didn’t have any close calls, because we had the right stuff,” he added.

They expect some other challenges, too, like weather and water levels when they launch May 9. The headwaters near Ortonville and Big Stone Lake are a series of channels that can be strikingly shallow. They plan to leave in the late afternoon, hoping for lighter winds when they hit places like the expanse of Lac Qui Parle Lake and other marshy waters. They’ll experience a few portages, too, and want to get to the rapids around Granite Falls their first morning.

A road crew of three or four will follow along in support.

Miller said while the adventure is shorter, it could be more intense at times, with consistently more paddling, than the Mississippi haul. It’s just two of them, although Duffus has customized their Jensen 18 canoe so that either rudder paddles will work from the bow or stern.

“It’s meant to be a fun community-based thing to get people out paddling … I hope people go with the spirit of it, which is, it is a fun excuse to get out and have an adventure.

“We are not trying to set a scorching record. We’re just trying to lay something down for other people,” Miller said.